Good morning this very quiet and overcast Sunday morning. Diane is sleeping and I'm not going to bother her. Jacob has left for Church with his brother to help set up for this Sundays services. Jacob has been up since five and he made sure I got to experience it with him. "Yes Jacob you are going to church with Tim, Karen will be here tomorrow, you work tomorrow, Izzy will be at church, Tim will be singing and the Oregon Ducks won their game against the Huskies. " You might as well confirm all his questions because he is not going to quit asking until he is satisfied with your validation.
Sunday are normally a very hectic and it can be stressful getting Diane ready to go to church. Everything we do in preparing can be a mine field experience and we never know what her reaction is going to be. You haven't really accomplished your mission until you are in church and she is in her chair. Up till a month ago we were going with out a wheel chair and this worked to a certain extent. ( Even though she could only walk with a lot of support I believed it was good for some exercise and also kept her on her feet to some extent. She has been forgetting how to walk and her balance is terrible. She can't walk without someone supporting her at this time.) The other conundrum was when she did get to her seat, we had to watch her at all times. You might step away from her for just a short time and it would be surprising how much trouble she could get in. She would get up and start mingling and greeting most anybody she bumped into with very friendly, but awkward conversation . Falling down was also something she did more than once. thankfully she doesn't fall hard. Since we have been using the wheelchair it's been a lot easier to control what she does, and she doesn't seem to mind. I still don't know how much longer taking her is going to benefit her or family and friends.
This journey you have been following our family on, has really been a roller coaster ride. The process can be tedious and slow moving at times and then there are times when you see huge changes in just days. We are starting to address the next step in her care. I know that she could be losing all her self care abilities. Some of the smallest things the patient can do is so much help to the caregiver.
1. standing and walking
2. drinking liquids ( they even forget how to use a straw )
3. knowing how and when to go to bathroom ( even though they need a lot of assistance. )
4. eating, they might not care about eating ( you still need cooperation in letting you feed them, if they won't open their mouth it's kind of hard to get them to eat.)
5. Bathing, dressing, can all be a chore without their cooperation. ( I have found that using the normal types of reasoning to do these things doesn't seem to matter. She isn't really concerned that she has food spots on her shirt and doesn't want to change right now.
Diane still sleeps in my bed and that really isn't a problem so far, she does sleep through the night most of the time. We are looking at the next step and probably will involve another room and more support from a caregiver. I want to keep her in our home as long as I can , but I'm not naive to the fact that eventually we might have to look at other alternatives.
paul
I'm Here It's not Why? What's Next ?
Sunday are normally a very hectic and it can be stressful getting Diane ready to go to church. Everything we do in preparing can be a mine field experience and we never know what her reaction is going to be. You haven't really accomplished your mission until you are in church and she is in her chair. Up till a month ago we were going with out a wheel chair and this worked to a certain extent. ( Even though she could only walk with a lot of support I believed it was good for some exercise and also kept her on her feet to some extent. She has been forgetting how to walk and her balance is terrible. She can't walk without someone supporting her at this time.) The other conundrum was when she did get to her seat, we had to watch her at all times. You might step away from her for just a short time and it would be surprising how much trouble she could get in. She would get up and start mingling and greeting most anybody she bumped into with very friendly, but awkward conversation . Falling down was also something she did more than once. thankfully she doesn't fall hard. Since we have been using the wheelchair it's been a lot easier to control what she does, and she doesn't seem to mind. I still don't know how much longer taking her is going to benefit her or family and friends.
This journey you have been following our family on, has really been a roller coaster ride. The process can be tedious and slow moving at times and then there are times when you see huge changes in just days. We are starting to address the next step in her care. I know that she could be losing all her self care abilities. Some of the smallest things the patient can do is so much help to the caregiver.
1. standing and walking
2. drinking liquids ( they even forget how to use a straw )
3. knowing how and when to go to bathroom ( even though they need a lot of assistance. )
4. eating, they might not care about eating ( you still need cooperation in letting you feed them, if they won't open their mouth it's kind of hard to get them to eat.)
5. Bathing, dressing, can all be a chore without their cooperation. ( I have found that using the normal types of reasoning to do these things doesn't seem to matter. She isn't really concerned that she has food spots on her shirt and doesn't want to change right now.
Diane still sleeps in my bed and that really isn't a problem so far, she does sleep through the night most of the time. We are looking at the next step and probably will involve another room and more support from a caregiver. I want to keep her in our home as long as I can , but I'm not naive to the fact that eventually we might have to look at other alternatives.
paul
I'm Here It's not Why? What's Next ?